This is the beginning of the personal Diary of our holiday in Bali in late September 2000.
This introduction to the travel group and then the organisation (or lack of it) for the trip may not be riveting, amusing or highly entertaining for you.  If you're more interested in the travel and the destination you might be better off going to the next part, 'Getting There' or the third part, 'Day 1.' that follow, but at least read the profile of our group first so that you know a bit about us.  This might lead you to a better understanding of the things that follow.
There are nineteen parts in total, finishing with 'Day 16.' and 'Getting Back'.


Proceed at your own risk.

It might be a good bedtime story but -

DO NOT INGEST DURING OR BEFORE DRIVING!



PROFILE:
       
                                          
Our group has a core of experienced Baliphiles.  Nell and Phil, with 12-year-old son Jay, are the seed material having travelled to Bali and other south east Asian countries at least once a year since Jay was 2.  On most of these trips Chris has accompanied them, frequently taking his son Scot, who is a great companion to Jay and who is this year old enough to buy his own beer.
Claire and I first went to Bali over 20 years ago.  Claire was a seasoned traveller but this was my first O/S trip.  In fact it was my first significant trip anywhere.  It was intended (I think) to be our bindingly sinful sojourn away from prying eyes and negative influences. 

Six years ago, Claire, through work, met Nell and Chris and we were thereby drawn back to a place we both had fond memories of. 
Phil is a sports person, having been a league footballer in younger days and is still an imposing figure anywhere but assumes giant proportions amongst the smaller stature of the Balinese.  He is now a manager in this field while the rest of us are present or past teachers in the secondary system.
Our ages range from 12 to 60+.  Most people would think of us as well off middle class urbanites, generally staid and conservative but given to an occasional fling as long as not too many people are looking. 
The youngsters are occasional party animals but we (the oldsters particularly included here) don't destroy ourselves on a regular basis. 
The central core has usually attracted a different group of satellite travellers each year.  This year, however, Claire and I are the only additions to the core for our fifth trip.  (Are we now close satellites or regulars or nearly core players?)

Understanding these things the reader will perhaps nod more knowingly at some of those things that follow.



Part of a holiday must at least be the journey itself, as well as the days of leisure and pleasure and I suppose that if the journey includes the planning then a holiday, like a story, can be started at any time. 

This Bali Story starts on Sunday 1 July, 2000, 10 weeks and 2 days before we even leave, simply because that's the time I first sat down to start the record.  It could have started 20 years ago, or six, or in 72 days time when we will land at Ngurah Rai Airport, Bali, but a lot of the ecstasy and the agony would be lost to the fogs of time if it had been delayed until then. 

It is a Diary record and as such it will not be short (the early start should at least give some strong indication of this).  Determination will be needed for the stranger to complete it, let alone relish it.  It is to be a personal documentary for my future years and I don?t want to omit any of the gory details in case I also omit the gems.

I first wrote about our Bali adventures last year, in a letter to family, friends, acquaintances and others.  It spread far wider than the audience for which it was originally intended.  It also seemed to be well accepted in certain critical quarters (a group of my fellow retired colleagues who worked in the English language field - which I did not so don?t expect a work of art to follow) and met with mild acclaim from others perhaps less qualified to judge. 
All of that has had a significant impetus to the commencement of this saga.

I hope that at some time in the years ahead I will be able to read the diary of this trip and thereby recall and re-live the finer details that an old memory will lose.  Perhaps too, at some time in the future my family will review it and find some understanding of me, and my feelings for Bali.  If readers are curious, or in the mood for self-flagellation, the "
Bali Saga '99" is currently linked from our Home Page and there are some pictures to go with it there also.

I guess that you have to be geriatric to understand this urge to write and record.

Why did I decide to start writing this early?  Well, a frequently frustrating but critical part of a group holiday is the prior planning and decision-making process that occurs within the group.  The more people involved the more critical and more difficult - and the more dummies are bitten down on before they can be spat (or spit as they would say in the USA).  I want to document this process a little because it has been an exciting, but at times tense prelude to the actual trip.  The mixture of emotions varied from extreme excitement at the thought of the holiday to utter frustration and at times barely concealed anger when decisions could not be agreed on, or those that had been agreed upon one week were mysteriously back in a state of flux the next week. 
Although it was often said that we could all go our separate ways and do our own thing if a planned activity did not suit us this is not always easy to put into practise.  If you are part of a travel group then companionship is a part of your needs and that is immediately lost if you leave the group.  You lose contact and you don' share the experiences of the others and a little uncomfortable feeling of being left out creeps into your memories. 
This alone is enough for all of us, I think, to want to have an agreed itinerary that we thought we would be happy to follow even if we did decide to change it if circumstances subsequently changed at the last minute. 
The planning usually took place on Friday evenings, over a few drinks and some sort of a meal, at Phil and Nell's home although this changed later because of their new circumstances.

This year the planning process was made partly more and partly less complicated by the total unavailability of any seats for the Frequent Fliers of the group.  Over past years this situation has steadily deteriorated from no problem at all 4 years ago, to having to pay for airfares to other Australian capital city departure points where seats to Denpasar were available which was the situation last year.
When you have budgeted and spent carefully all year long to accumulate points it is frustrating in the extreme to find that the airlines, (both Ansett and Qantas in our case) can' meet their end of the bargain you have presumed was in place.  I have seen it suggested that this is discriminatory to people who work in education particularly, and who can not take holidays whenever they might choose but are confined to holiday times which are of course the peak travel and accommodation periods. 

I would not disagree with this assessment! 
I have often wondered what Bali is like out of the school holiday peak season, when it is less crowded on the streets.  One day I intend to find out. 


As 'free' seats were not available we would at least all travel together this time and the search for the best travel bargain became a common concern. 
So it was that, right from the start, our past loyalty to Ansett evaporated.  When it became obvious that Qantas was in the same situation but was not prepared to be totally open about it, they were also disregarded in our search, and Aussie loyalties succumbed to an outraged sense of the fair thing. 
Our quest became centred on Garuda Indonesia airlines, as there were not many other options: in fact there were none.  Good comments about Garuda on the Bali Forum (http://balitravelforum.com) gave confidence to the less enthusiastic members of the group.  The much cheaper prices available from Garuda were attractive to those now without regular incomes and clinched this decision. 
The greatly reduced travel times resulting from the direct flight with no stopovers was an added bonus.  Five hours in the air means that we will arrive much fresher and ready to go than we have been after twelve and a half hour flights all round Australia on previous occasions. 
This short flight time also means that our arrival will be just after noon rather than just after midnight effectively giving us an extra half day in Paradise. 

As we only had the options of going in school holidays and July was too near, September was the obvious answer to the 'when?' question.  It only remained to decide where! (Within Bali of course). 

And this was a torment!

After much reading of the brochures, much perusal of the Bali Forum, many debates about past venues, the construction of comparative charts on the computer, repeated digestion of the relevant and irrelevant facts, reason was abandoned. 
The Sheraton Nusa Indah Resort was chosen as the new venue for this year and the old faithful Holiday Inn BaliHai at Tuban would become the mainstay for shopping forays and short adventures further afield.

The best price we got was through The Flight Centre, but only after we got a really good package from a small local Getaway agent and Flight Centre lived up to their advertised promise to beat any offer - but only by A$20 per adult as it turned out.  The final figure was $1830 (and $150 for no-excess family insurance) for 4 nights at Nusa Dua and 12 nights at Tuban. 
Through Ansett last year a similar package with one day less and only 3 nights at Nusa Dua was well over $2300!  This saving of nearly $500 (for the non Frequent Fliers at least), coupled with an exchange rate that is at the moment consistently over Rp5000 to the dollar (compared with around Rp4000 to 4200 last year) should mean lots more massages, lots more shopping, lots more clothing, bigger presents for our Balinese friends and so on. 


It will not mean less money actually spent I'm sure.

We actually got very good accommodation rates through Bali Villas (the hosts for the Forum mentioned above) but we couldn't get any discounts on air fares so the total turned out to be above the travel agents' package prices.


Monday 10 July.
Nine weeks and four days to take-off - and two problems have arisen - or have they?
Nell has won a promotion to a country site, and Phil and Jay will go with her of course.  What communication stresses will this put on the planning and organisation that centred around social Friday evenings at their home? 
Only time will tell, but it is probable that there will be some difficulties because Phil is the contact person with the travel agents.
The other is really less of a problem.  We have been advised that there are no Garden View rooms available at the Sheraton Indah.  A Poolside room will cost an extra $44.  What do we want to do?  Phil makes an instant, autocratic decision and says that we will all take the Poolside rooms!
All being swimmers, no-one argues the point, and probably no-one wants to go back to the difficulties of selecting a new hotel either! 

I've been tracking the exchange rate (via the Currency Converter on the Bali Travel Forum) for the last month or so and today it's 5473.73 rupiah to the Aussie dollar.  It's been a bit higher, peaking at 5490, but I can't help wondering if its going much higher.  If the tourists are returning to Bali after the scares of the Indonesian elections and subsequent civil riots, I think the exchange rate will decline.  Should we cash a couple of hundred dollars now as a hedge against it dropping?  I have all sorts of altruistic thoughts, like clearing some of Australia''s rupiah stocks back to Indonesia and having more to spend with the natives when we arrive, thus returning it to the economy at the poorest level rather than into the wallets of the rich.  But perhaps really it's just another way of trying to get a bargain?
I must speak to the others about it.

Started to look at the prices (not really important) and the current version numbers (much more important) of computer software today.
I have no doubt that I'll be tempted when we get into Platinum at Mataharis in Denpasar or Harry's Computers.

I've also had a stamp made that I can use in the Spirax Note Pads that I use as travel diaries.  They fit comfortably into the shirt pocket, which makes them easy to carry at all times.  On the back cover I paste a print of my commonly used phrases, Salamat pagee, Apa Kabar?, and so on.  If I'm overtaken by a fit of 'KRAFT' ('Kant Remember A Flaming Thing') I only have to lift it part way out of my pocket and look down thro' the bifocals to have a bit of a cheat. 
Inside the back cover I''ve pasted a 'cheat sheet' conversion chart for 100 to 500,00 Rp (into A$) at exchange rates from 4700 to 5200.  I'm not too quick at this bargaining business and find this little cheat sheet is a great help at telling me where I''m at in the process.  It's again easy to refer to in my shirt pocket although at times I've kept it in the bumbag with the calculator and Passport photocopy. 
Anyway, back to the stamp which I've had made. 
It's to note the essential details of each photo as I take it.  Film type, shutter speed, 'f' stop, polarising filter use etc.  I can fit 6 stamp prints onto a page in the notebook so 24 records therefore only take up two leaves in the book.  (I only ever use 24 shot film so I can get it printed to see if I need to repeat a shot that I'm not happy with.)  If I want to re-take a photo I know what I did the last time because I've got this record, and so I know what changes I need to make to improve the photo.  It's also helpful to refer to later to get some idea which films handle different colours best; good greens for rice paddies, or good yellow for flowers, and so on. 


We're due to leave in 8 weeks from tomorrow.
For some time I've been toying with the idea of leaving before the others.  I have that freedom because I'm retired whereas the others are constrained by work commitments.  I could leave on Monday rather than Friday and my reason for thinking about this is that I'd like to see the more distant parts of Bali; parts that the others, Chris excepted probably, are not really enthusiastic about.  They are more inclined to continue exploring the recognised tourist areas and re-visiting familiar and friendly haunts.  If I left on Monday I would have an extra 4 days to follow my own inclinations without any commitments to the others.  And when you are travelling with a group there are commitments to the party I think, and I do miss their company after a day or so.


We're now due to leave in 7 weeks tomorrow.
I've given up the idea of leaving earlier than the others and going off exploring - at least this time.  I've floated a few questions on the Bali Forum and sent a few faxes and e-mails.  The conclusions that I've come to are that although there are no more flight costs involved (nor are there any savings this close to school holidays) the accommodation cost of travelling as a single are almost the same as a couple!  This puts too great a strain on the available finances. 
I've also tried to find those cheap $5 - $10-a-night places but frankly, sight unseen, the thought of cold showers for 4 days is not appealing, and going to a squat toilet in the dark back yard of some unfamiliar establishment makes my toes curl.  It's a long time, also, since we all flew out together as we are doing this time, in fact not since the first time we went in '94.  I think that this is something I'd like to experience again. 
The thing that finally sealed the fate of my plans was Claire's decision to take some long service leave next year.  This will give us the chance to stay in Bali perhaps for 4 weeks or more, moving around to different areas with possibly as much a week in one place, digging a bit deeper than we have been able to so far.  I'll use this trip to investigate and inspect some potential little hotels around Bedugal/Lake Bratan/Pura Ulun Danu as well as Lovina/Singaraja, and perhaps even Candi Dasa. 


7 weeks tomorrow! 
That makes it time to pay for the flight and accommodations.  I'd better make a note of that.   I'll be in no end of strife if I forget!!!!


6 weeks to go and we've booked Ketut Juari for a day trip up north. 
Pity he can' get to us before 9 am.  I think that's going to mean second rate light for photos by the time we get to Bedugal.  Still, I can plan what I might want to do next year when we might have more time in Bali.  Scot (Chris' son) is not coming with the rest of us as he wants to do some flying training.  He's due to get there on the second Monday. 


5 weeks to go last Friday - that's 35 days. 
I've managed to get a Sharp Electronic Organiser to take with us. It''ll hold all of the notes I've saved from the Bali Forum for the past few months.  It was a bit disappointing for a start because it doesn't download Word files directly from the PC.  I've found an intermediary program on the net which translates Word files into a language that the Sharp does understand - and as a bonus it allows downloads of more that the 2Mb limit that the Sharp has inbuilt. 
After 2 days of frustration the bonus is a welcome reward. 

Tickets to be picked up today.  Miserable weather, cold, windy, wet.  Have to take the car to Glenelg instead of the bike.  Max (our dog who usually rides on the back of the motorbike) doesn't seem to mind.  It's warm in the car with the heater on full. 
Little problem!  Claire's flight ticket is for Mr. not Miss.  Has to go back to Garuda for re-issue - Flight Centre to pay the re-issue cost.  Wait till I tell her!!  Probably better to get it fixed now than to have some poor airline worker filleted on the runway because he wouldn't let her on the plane, and it would be difficult to make her look like a 'Mr'! 
Hotel bookings at Sheraton Indah are for a Garden View room instead of the expected change to a Pool View.  Flight Centre says that they can fix that with a fax.  Hope they're right.  More filleting if not!! 
Salesman Scot at the Diamonds Duty Free photo shop says that nearly all my order is in.  The filters should arrive later this week but I'll be lucky to get more than half of what I've ordered because I've picked out so many odd ones.  I guess I'll see on Friday. 
By then it'll only be 22 days to go. 


Just over a week to go and the tension is getting hard to control. 
Hell, I've even taken three trips down to the airport to try to get decent photos of Garuda flights taking off so that I've got the opening for this year's photo album. 

I am certainly looking forward to getting there.  The only worry is how many traumas there will be when we have to come back at the end of the holiday. 
Perhaps this is not something to worry about before we even leave.

I've made up a daily count-down sheet onto which I can write things that have to be done: haircut, bottles of bubbly (sorry, frothy coffee) and cardboard cartons of cold tea kept fresh in silver plastic liners, business card wallet, travellers cheques and so on. 

Having physio twice a week for a crook back.  It doesn't seem to be responding yet but traction last session seemed to help. 
Only days to go!  Will it be OK? 

Still have one camera filter to get.  Expected it today but it's not in!  Next Wednesday is getting a bit too close to the Friday am take off.  Should I take my business elsewhere?  Similar thoughts about my planned driver for a day trip north.  He may be the best there is (according to the Forum) but is he worth nearly twice as much as anyone else?  I need to canvass opinions amongst the others about this. 


Seven sleeps to go.
The bloody rupiah has dropped to it's lowest rate for months and months, and it's sill describing a line on the chart paper like an Olympic (can I use that word here without paying royalties to someone in 'Sydeney' I wonder?) diver wearing lead boots! 
Why didn't I give in to my avarice 7 weeks ago and buy some rupiah at the peak exchange rate? 
This is going to put financial pressure on arrangements that I thought were well and truly cemented down. 


Four sleeps to go - that's if you can sleep! 
Pick up money and travellers cheques today. 
Damn filter for the new camera lens is still not in. 
I'm trying to organise a means of getting dog food to the Street Dog Foundation - toy teddy bears to the orphanage. 
Hell!  Where is that orphanage. 
Must get Adelaide T-shirts for the massage girls on the beach. 
Scads of e-mails and a new multi address posting to set up on Hotmail. 
Check the Forum postings.  Does Fernandez want to start an interstate war on the Forum?  Have I encouraged him in my reply? 
Update the new Forum recommendations into the PC and on to the web page.
Joan the Pet Care lady came over last night to settle our minds about Max's welfare when we're gone.  She comes twice a day to feed the beasts and to take him for a walk.  Cheaper than kennels and he stays in his own familiar environment, eating familiar food with much less stress.  It's well over 12 months since she was here last but he remembers that last time as she left he got doggy chockies from the boot of her car.  As soon as she opens the front door he's off and sitting by the boot waiting!  I think he'll be all right.

Mend a school cooking pot for Claire.  How do you lose three out of the four screws that hold the handles on, but still use it for long enough to fill up the three vacant holes with Lord knows what food residue?
There are things in this world that the mere male of the species is not designed to understand I'm sure. 

Ketut is advised that the trip north is off.  We may in fact still do it but it will have to be on a cheaper scale to fit the now reduced sum of rupiahs we will get for our bankroll.  We'll do this by using local drivers.  As this means we can leave earlier perhaps I'll get the good photo light at Lake Bratan that I hoped for?  I'll keep in contact with him to (hopefully) ensure his services next year when we can really explore the byways.

Will I post this on the Forum before we leave?  An attractive option as it will mean all the negative comments will be buried in the archives by the time we get back and I wont have to read them.

Aha!  The missing camera filter is in.  Race off to pick it up, with the cash and TC's. 
Get saturated in the days only rainsquall so far. 
There are mysterious forces - -
Dry soggy (and smelly) Max before Claire gets home.

What have I forgotten?


Tuesday 12 th.  Three sleeps to go. 
Phil rang last night.  He has a new job and has to come to the city for a conference on Thursday so Nell will also come with him and get in a bit of Duty Free shopping.  They had intended to drive down (or up or across or whichever way it is from Big River country) on Thursday night so this is really a bit of a blessing.  He also raised the question of a small Aussie type present for Liz and John, the American couple who used the Bali Travel Forum to invite people to their Bali wedding.  I confess I hadn't even thought of it!.  My suggestion of a teatowel (dishcloth?) with an Aussie motif drew heaps of scorn and derision.  Claire has consequently been put in charge of research. 
Yesterday I recalled a Forum report in which the writer described the smile and kiss given by a small child in response to a Chupa Chup (small sweet on a little stick - lollipop?) gift.  It was an image which I couldn't resist and so I went down to the corner Bilo store and bought 2 dozen. 
The pile of stuff to be packed continues to grow!  Thank God the packing is Claire's task.  I just buy the stuff. 

Max knows something is afoot I'm sure.  He regularly jumps up onto the desk now and quietly, gently, insistently, puts one paw on my hand so I can't continue these keyboard entries.  I give him a bit of a pat, scratch and squeeze.  He puts his chin on my shoulder for a few seconds and then curls up on the towel next to the mouse mat with an audible sigh. 

What to do today? 

*
Physio first at 9.30. 
* Downtown Duty Free for small tape recorder and supply of tapes. 
* Ring Garuda. 
* Chemist for bottle of fluoride tooth scrub.  Should try for 'Aquear' also.    (Another Forum recommendation.)  I had an ear infection there last time and it was a miserable two days that I don't want to repeat. 
* Find phone number for 'Baliopoly' for Nell.  In Denpasar? 
* Claire's end-of-term faculty dinner tonight. 
* Try to remember what I've forgotten to get. 
Time to get started!


Wednesday the 13 th. 
Two sleeps to go.

Last night on the way to Claire's faculty dinner (that's probably the reason the letters on the screen look crooked this morning) she suggested giving Liz and John an Ostrich egg for their wedding present.  Well, I suppose it's uniquely Australian but the logistics of getting it to Bali, and them getting it back to the States in one piece boggles the mind despite the fact that the shell is built like a bomb case!  And what would they think of an empty eggshell? 
We differ, and so she will contact higher authorities (fellow travellers) with better taste than mine for supporting opinions.  Supporting her opinion that is.

Retired teacher's lunch today.  I can't wait to casually drop the little message that I'm off to Bali on Friday.

Have found the phone number for Baliopoly for Nell - 732 617 - need to replenish the supply of Chateau Cardboard (carton of everyday wine) before tonight.

Sew the dog food into a hessian bag for transport.  I guess the bag might be useful as bedding too.  Post to Helen on the Forum to let her know she has not wasted her time raising the needs of the Bali Street Dogs Foundation.  Feedback for good deeds is too often forgotten these days I think.  Like the 'Thank You' letter to hosts after a visit and hospitality.  Am I showing an ancient set of values?  The ease and speed of the net makes it easy to do these things, but easy to overlook them also it seems.

Ah-ha,.  I find that Si Badak (of high status on the Forum) is unexpectedly going to Bali on Friday too.  Be interesting to meet him face to face over a Bintang. 
I believe he drinks.

Remembered to put the waiters friend corkscrew out for packing, and to sharpen the blade so it will peel salaks and cut passion fruit (oh boy, I can taste them as I type this) and mangosteens. 

But what have I forgotten?


Thursday and one to go.

Claire's gone for a job interview this morning.  Not a good time with Bali on her mind but, 'poo happens', so they say. 
Nell rang from up-state to wish her luck but she'd already gone. 

? Physio again today.  Last time before take off. Back's not good and I've got out the anti-inflammatory pills but I think they've given me the wrong ones.  Have to go back to the chemist and check. 
? New flea collar for the cat. 
? Get 'Chateau Cardboard' that I forgot yesterday. 
? Take CD player for repair while we're away.
? Check Forum for new tips and print out summary of recommendations to take with us.
? Post this on the Forum at the last minute with a separate warning posting so that readers know what to expect.


I see on the Forum weather forecast that Bali is for 32 degrees minimum and 26 overnight, 55% humidity, slightly overcast and with a 14-knot southeasterly breeze. 

This is expected to be repeated tomorrow with a slight clearing of the overcast and a consequent rise in temperature. 

Here it is 14 degrees and I have just been soaked riding home from the physio's.
'Why are you going to Bali?', he asked me! 

Perhaps I should ring him from Bali tomorrow and tell him? 


If you have persisted this far, dear reader, you can give yourself a grade of A++. 

The remainder will be written (and posted) after our return. 



Filo.

Thursday September 14, 2000.



LATER
- If you want to press on to the second episode (I promise that it's shorter).   Here's the link to "Getting There".  "Getting There", the next part of the Bali Story 2000, is the story of the trip to Bali, from the  short trip to the airport and the flight across the center of Australia, over the Timor Sea to the first glimpse of the Island of Smiles.
 
Here's a link back to our
Home Page where there is an E-mail link.   


 


 
The Bali Travellers, 2000.
Claire, Phil, Janelle, Chris and Jay.
Scot was to join us later.
The BALI STORY 2000.   -   Getting Ready.